Waddling back into the limelight after a multimillion-dollar makeover, the Humboldt penguins at the Milwaukee County Zoo are once again fractious attractions in the newly remodeled space aptly named Penguins of the Pacific. According to FOX6 News, a ceremonial ribbon was snipped today to mark the exhibit's official reopening, following an extensive revamp funded in part by a hefty $3.5 million grant conferred by the Tourism Capital Grant Program of the State of Wisconsin.

The project, which was instigated by the State of Wisconsin’s Department of Administration and supported by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, has seen the penguin's pool expand from a modest 10,000 to a massive 30,000 gallons, the Zoological Society of Milwaukee's stately windows now give unfettered views while new shade structures and a state-of-the-art water filtration system raise not only the habitat's functional but its aesthetic ante, providing justice for such enviably adaptable creatures. As reported by The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, during the habitat upgrade process, the 15 penguins took up temporary residence in the flamingo building, a move that placed them out of public sight and, one might say, out of mind but certainly not out of the hearts of their expectant zoogoers.

In tandem with the habitat's opening, the zoo celebrated with a flurry of penguin-centric festivities at the Wild Lights holiday event, the first 500 guests were treated to Penguins of the Pacific tote bags - a chic takeaway to remember the day the penguins reclaimed their stomping, or better yet, splashing ground. Moreover, Milwaukee With Kids editor-in-chief Calie Herbst highlighted the opportunity for guests to engage in a spot of creativity by making their own penguin masks, a nod to both the importance of interactive learning and the simple joy of craft.